Hagrid is in the House!

The Anti-Gentilist rhetoric coming out of Israel these days is caustic and rising, and it worries me greatly. The election of the right wing government, on the heels of the invasion of Gaza, raises all sorts of fears in me about the Zionist racism that bubbles just under the surface of some parts of Israeli society. (If one truly believes that one's people are "God's Chosen People," is that not the very definition of racist?)

The IDF seems especially prone to this racism, and its accompanying brutality. This is frightening, because these are the people who have the guns and the nukes, many of whom don't want a two-state solution, and many of whom are itching to go to war with Iran. I can only hope that the saner parts of Israeli society, as well as the Diaspora Jews, will prevail. Otherwise, I'm afraid it's going to get much, much uglier in the Middle East.

Food for thought:

Gaza war crime claims gather pace as more troops speak out

Israeli Soldiers Say IDF Rabbis Framed Gaza as Religious War

"The state of Israel is at war with the Palestinian people"

Worried about apartheid? Too late, Mr Olmert, it’s already here

Palestinians Not Allowed to Walk, Buy Food in Jerusalem Neighborhood

Zionism is the Problem: The idea of a Jewish state is keeping Israelis and Palestinians from living in peace.

These T-shirts are particularly outrageous:

Shalom. Salaam. Peace.

And, so, Obama's true colours are now showing: He's Israel's Bitch.

Let's review how I see it:

Right-wing Jewish Supremacists (U.S. corollary: White Supremacists) in the Israeli government, with backing from the U.S. Military-Industrial Complex and End Times Christian Fundamentalists, are committed to taking over all of the historic lands of Israel currently occupied by Palestinians. While the Israeli government officially denies this is the real long-term goal, its actions speak much louder than words.

In the West Bank, this takeover is being accomplished through the incremental use of settlers to steal land, and apartheid-like measures to oppress the non-Jewish residents. In Gaza, the takeover is being accomplished through creation of a "ghetto," a closed off and blockaded pocket of Palestinians, many of them refugees from other parts of Israel.

With the impending election of Barack Hussein Obama as president of the United States, the warmongers in the Israeli government see that they only have a short time to advance the Zionist cause under the Bush Doctrine, before Obama takes office.

On U.S. election day, Nov. 4, 2008, Israel breaks the cease fire with democratically-elected Hamas, provoking the militants by sending IDF soldiers on a raid into Gaza. Hamas retaliates with renewed rocket fire.

On December 27, 2008, under the rubric of "fighting terrorism," with weapons supplied by the United States, Israel begins bombing civilian targets in Gaza, saying that the targets are being used by Hamas militants. Hundreds of civilians are killed.

On Jan 3, 2009, the Israeli ground invasion begins, using U.S. military armaments and with the backing of the United States. Many more Gazan civilians die. Hamas continues to fire homemade rocket and mortar attacks into Israel from Gaza, as does Fatah, Hama's chief political rival in Gaza. Very few Israeli civilians are killed. International aid workers and journalists are kept out of Gaza by Israel. A humanitarian crisis ensues, which Israel denies is happening. 15% of all buildings in Gaza are destroyed. Electricity, water, and food are almost completely destroyed. Hospitals and schools are bombed, as well as all police stations.

Although the Israeli's claim that they are there trying to stop rocket attacks, it becomes clear that they are trying to destroy Gaza's infrastructure and get the people to flee. Egypt continues to keep the border between itself and Gaza closed, so that refugees cannot cross into Egypt. Forcing large number of Gazans into Egypt now appears to be one of the primary unstated goals of the invasion, but Egypt does not cooperate.

During this tumultuous period, president-elect Obama is repeatedly asked to make a statement on the crisis, but demurs, saying "there is only one president at a time." However, because of his earlier statements criticizing the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India, it is clear that this is a dishonest stance on Obama's part. (Obameter: -1 (+4))

President-elect Obama's very first appointment after the election was the appointment of Rahm Israel Emmanuel, hawkish Democrat and son of a Jerusalem-born member of the militant Zionist paramilitary organization, Irgun, as his White House Chief of Staff. This ensures that pro-Zionist voices are the only ones heard in the administration. (Obameter: -2 (+2))

On January 17, 2009, just before the U.S. presidential inauguration, Israel declares a unilateral ceasefire without any agreement from Hamas. It is immediately clear that this was timed in order to provide Obama cover, so he does not have to address ongoing violence in Gaza.

The day after the inauguration, Obama began calling leaders in the region: Israel, Egypt, Syria, and Palestinian "leader" Abbas (who has no power base, and is just a stooge). Who didn't Obama call? Hamas. (Obameter: -1 (+1))

Speaking at the State Department yesterday, Obama finally broke his silence. And it was immediately clear where Obama stands: Israel are the "good guys," Hamas are the "bad guys."

Some choice quotes from Obama, with my responses:

"America is committed to Israel’s security."

But obviously not Palestine's security.

"And we will always support Israel’s right to defend itself against legitimate threats."

And what of Palestine's right to defend itself?

"For years, Hamas has launched thousands of rockets at innocent Israeli citizens."

And for years, Israel has been killing, occupying and blockading innocent Palestinian civilians.

"No democracy can tolerate such danger to its people, nor should the international community, and neither should the Palestinian people themselves, whose interests are only set back by acts of terror."

Let's not forget that Gaza is also a democracy. Hamas was democratically elected.

Obama went on to talk about innocent Israelis, but not innocent Palestinians. He equated both sides, as if Israel and Hamas were morally equal. They clearly are not.

What Obama never did was criticize Israel's behaviour over the past few weeks. Obama never addressed the root causes of the violence.

The only positive things Obama said was to state that the crossings into Gaza should be opened, and the blockade ended. (Obameter: +1 (+2)) However, it's clear that the Israelis are not interested in doing so, and will probably find excuses to ignore this. Obama also appointed George Mitchell (who helped broker the 1998 Good Friday Accords in Northern Ireland) as U.S. envoy to the Middle East. (Obameter: +2 (+4))

I was willing to give Obama the benefit of the doubt, but it is now clear that his policy towards Israel will not be substantially different than the Bush administration. Obama is unwilling to address the root causes of the conflict. He has broken the silence, and his policies are now open to fair criticism. Because of this speech, I've just lost a lot of respect for Obama.

For more on the Obama speech, and what it means, I encourage you to listen to Noam Chomsky's interview with Democracy Now! today.

Obameter: -10 (-6)

This is completely disheartening to watch:


Reminds me of how bloodthirsty Americans were after 9/11.

Idiots. Bloody idiots.

One of Israel's constant talking points for U.S. support is that it's "the only democracy in the Middle East."

That lie was put to rest this week, when Israel's Central Elections Committee banned the two main Arab parties in the Knesset, Balad and United Arab List-Ta'al, from running in the February elections. Sitting Arab members of the Knesset will now not be allowed to run for re-election, effectively removing Arab representation from Israel's ruling body.

The reason given: the parties don't recognize Israel as a Jewish State, and they call for armed conflict against it.

Sadly, Israel's "commitment" to democracy is about as deep and sincere as America's, given that the Hamas government in Gaza, which Israel is now trying to overthrow with U.S. support, was democratically elected.

I guess in Israel & America's definition of "democracy," it only means "elected people we like."

This does not bode well for the Israeli Arabs, who up until now have had representation in the Knesset.

It also does not bode well for peace in the region.

I was going to write a scathing invective about how the IDF killed a whole bunch of innocent Gazans in a UN school that didn't have any Hamas terrorists... those innocent Gazans who were warned by the IDF to evacuate their homes ahead of bombing... so they ran to a UN school for shelter... where they were bombed.

I was going to write that Vatican officials are now comparing Gaza to a "concentration camp."

I was going to write that I think there are some terrible possibilities on display: that Israel wants to drive the Gazans into Egypt, as some sort of reverse Exodus... or Israel is willing to commit genocide.

I don't want to believe its true.

But I'm too numb. I don't feel the anger now, just... resignation.

I'm going to bed.

"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."
   -- Elie Wiesel, 1986 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech

The Palestinian people now endure suffering and humiliation, at the hands of the Israeli Defense Forces. This makes me very sad, because the Israelis, of all people, should remember what it is like to be abused, torn from their homes, forced to flee into little enclaves and caged in ghettos, oppressed for their religious beliefs, subjected to pogroms, and indiscriminately killed by superior military forces.

How has this happened? How have the abused stepchildren of Adolph Hitler grown up to become abusers themselves?

What's going on in Gaza right now feels like a betrayal, a betrayal of the very things that earned Jews the sympathy of the world. A betrayal of the lessons that the Holocaust taught the world, lessons which seem to have been forgotten.

Furthermore, this Israeli oppression of the Palestinians is taking place on my dime. As an American, my taxes pay for the weapons that the IDF is using to kill innocents. That makes me very, very angry.

I am compelled to speak out, against Israel's behaviour, because so many others will not, or cannot.

Never again. Never forget.

Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem is questioning Israel's widely-distributed video of "Hamas fighters loading rockets on a truck," which Israel subsequently bombed on Monday. B'Tselem claims it tracked down the truck, and the surviving men... and says they were loading welding equipment, and the "rockets" were actually gas canisters.

Al-Jazeera has aired a report:

I don't actually know who is telling the truth... but right now, I'm not very inclined to believe Israel's account of what happened.

The Israelis and the Palestinians continue their death dance of retribution, locked in the grip of each other's hatred, unable to let go.

The Israeli Defense Force has launched a massive air assault on Gaza, destroying all of the police stations in Gaza. The attack was in retaliation for Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel over the past week, when an Egyptian-brokered truce expired.

Israel labeled the police stations as “terrorism infrastructure," and claimed that over 150 of the dead were Hamas militants. But we know from long experience that Israel is very good at justifying its actions by using words to cloak its deeds. There are civilians, including children, known to be among the Palestinian dead.

Goliath (Israel) continues to beat the shit out of David (Palestine), and the United States continues to fund the whole thing. Who's making money here? One guess: The arms merchants, who supply both sides.

Now Hamas is vowing revenge. The spilling of blood on both sides will continue to escalate.

When does the death spiral end?

And when do we, the U.S. taxpayers, stand up and say we won't finance this bullshit anymore?

"An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind."-- Gandhi

Obama (and Big Media) Turn Blind Eye to Israeli Apartheid

Is the chance for racial reconciliation, change, and the end of a Republican White House that Obama represents worth this price? That's the question for me this election.

I'm really starting to get nervous about this drumbeat for war with Iran. The Iraq debacle has shown that Americans are easily manipulated by propaganda and lies into going to war, much to the delight of the Military-Industrial-Congressional complex and the Bush-Cheney war profit machine.

Now there's evidence that the biggest reason given that Iran should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons, Iranian President Ahmadinejad's much-repeated quote that he wished to see Israel "wiped off the map" may actually be a mistranslation. According to UK Guardian Columnist Jonathan Steele, the phrase may actually be closer to "the regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time."

Kind of puts a different spin on the quote, doesn't it? While the first translation is abhorrent to me, I kind of agree with that second translation.

Now, I don't pretend to speak Farsi. I don't pretend to know if Jonathan Steele or his sources are reliable. But what I do know is that the Bush Administration cannot be trusted, and that the mainstream U.S. media, which is clearly in the pocket of the Israeli lobby, definitely cannot be trusted to tell a balanced truth about Middle Eastern affairs.

I don't know what the right answer is. But I do know that going to war with Iran over its nuclear programme may very possibly trigger World War III, with the U.S. and Israel on one side, and the Islamic world, Russia, and possibly China on the other side. Because of this danger, we must proceed very, very carefully.

Is it worth going to war over a mistranslation? With the stakes so high, isn't it worth stepping back from the rhetoric and propaganda, taking a deep breath, and studying the issue logically and dispassionately?

Let's not get goaded into an unjust war again. Given our history as a country, we need to let cooler, reasoned heads prevail. Please, please, please, I beg you, question EVERYTHING that the mainstream media and the Bush administration is telling you.

Our lives depend on it.